


H is for Hakutaku

by HomeForImaginaryFriends



Series: The A,B,Cs of Mythical Creatures and Monsters [8]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, M/M, Magic, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-19
Updated: 2018-03-19
Packaged: 2019-04-04 14:15:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,132
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14022057
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HomeForImaginaryFriends/pseuds/HomeForImaginaryFriends
Summary: Asahi goes on a search for a being to help defeat a Yokai.





	H is for Hakutaku

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Kath (KathWolfie)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/KathWolfie/gifts).



> This is for Kath who requested Hakutaku+AoAsa and who could deny this adorable and very large pairing? Not me that's for sure!
> 
> Feel free to drop by and offer up a mythical creature+ship on tumblr (or here!)  
> http://thatishogwash.tumblr.com/

Asahi made his way through the bog, felt his booted feet sink with every heavy step into the permanently dampened earth.  Thankfully it was not flooded but that fact didn’t make it any more pleasant to walk around in during high summer. He was dripping with sweat, his clothes and hair clinging uncomfortably to his skin and he felt weighed down and lethargic.  He hadn’t meant to search through the swampland when the sun was high in the sky, an unsympathetic witness to his stumbling around but he refused to go back now.

 

They needed help.  A Yokai had appeared in the village and was taking all the children.  No matter how many guards they put on them, no matter what wards or seals they used they were always gone by morning.  They had searched the surrounding area high and low but could find no sign of either the Yokai or the children.

 

The one person who had seen the Yokai had succumbed to a horrible illness.  Daichi was more than just their leader, he was the pillar of their entire community.  With him laid out everyone was beginning to panic and Asahi couldn’t blame them. Even as more children disappeared each night everyone could look to Daichi and know that he was on it, that he would figure it out like he always did.  But now Daichi was unconscious, gasping for breath as his lungs filled with liquid and his body slowly drained of all warmth.

 

Asahi had little knowledge when it came to Yokai, he always left that up to the scholars of the village like Ennoshita and Tsukishima but even they were coming up empty handed.  It had been Ennoshita who had given Asahi the idea to go out the marsh in a last desperate plea to the gods to lend them assistance.

 

Hakutaku was known to grace the swamplands on the east side of the village.  Asahi had seen the huge white ox when they had been younger, the day Daichi had been chosen to lead the village.  Everyone had taken it as a good omen for things to come and for years afterwards, it seemed to be true.

 

Even though Hakutaku was told as a benevolent spirit, Asahi was scared out of his mind.  But Hakutaku was suppose to be very wise and knowledgable, especially about Yokai. None of the books they had were any help.  They had sent word to other villages but everyone seemed to be coming up empty handed.

 

Asahi stumbled and leaned against a tree.  He wiped furtively at his sweat covered face.  He felt as if he might pass out at any moment and he was drenched through.  It seemed a hopeless cause. Just because Hakutaku had appeared before him as a child didn’t mean they would suddenly come again.

 

Asahi’s sharp ears picked up a noise to his left and he gripped the hilt of his sword as he turned, ready for a fight and hoping he could avoid one.  Asahi was a skilled fighter but he rarely enjoyed it the way the other soldiers such as Tanaka and Hinata did.

 

Sweaty fingers fell away from his sword, hanging loosely at his side as a figure walked through the trees.  They were huge, even larger than Asahi who tended to be taller and larger than almost everyone he met. They were also very pale with pure white hair that did nothing to hide the long white horns.  Dressed in a simple white yukata with green trim they looked completely out of place but somehow familiar to Asahi.

 

“Hello.”  Asahi greeted nervously.  He thought he should be even more nervous or at least on guard.  An unknown Yokai was stealing children from their village and now this stranger, who was clearly not human, appeared in the marsh?  A place where no mortal could or would live.

 

The horned man stepped closer before pointing to Asahi.  He cringed back, hesitating a moment before realizing that the creature wasn’t pointing to him but something near him.  Asahi turned and saw a bright yellow ribbon wrapped around a tree, a familiar sight Asahi had from his childhood. He turned back to the figure, who was undoubtedly closer.

 

“You are Hakutaku?”  Asahi asked, unsure of himself.  A dip of the horned man's head, a confirmation to Asahi’s question.  He never heard of Hakutaku becoming human before.

 

Asahi had met him as a child.  His father had gone off into the swamps to gather certain algae and herbs that grew there and Asahi had wanted to help.  He had gotten lost and had curled up at the base of at tree, certain he would drown and no one would find his remains. That was when Hakutaku appeared, large and pure white with many eyes and horns.  He had told Asahi to follow the yellow ribbons, they would lead him home.

 

“You need help?”  The same voice that the ox had came out from the man in front of him.  Deep, if mountains could talk Asahi was sure they would sound much like Hakutaku.

 

“Please.”  Asahi pleaded, breath stuttering as Hakutaku closed the small distance between them.  He didn’t have eyebrows and it made his features appear so severe but there was something in his eyes that settled Asahi’s rapidly beating heart.

 

“I thought this form might be easier for you.”  Hakutaku stated, tilting his head just slightly to the side as his eyes looked over Asahi’s face.  He wondered what the holy beast saw in Asahi. “You cried when you were a child and I appeared before you.”  Asahi tossed his hands up defensively, for once glad for the heat so his blush wouldn’t be so obvious.

 

“I’m sorry!”  Asahi apologized quickly, afraid that he had offended the creature in front of him.  “You’re very beautiful.” Asahi wanted to bite his own tongue off. It was the truth, the creature in front of him was inhumanly beautiful but that didn’t mean he had to go and say it.

 

“Please call me Aone.”  The Hakutaku requested softly and if Asahi didn’t know any better he could have sworn he saw the creature blushing.  “I can assist you with the problem you’re having.” Asahi felt a wave of relief before he gave Hakutaku, no- Aone, a big warm smile.

 

“Thank you Aone.”  Asahi said with real feeling.  Aone covered his mouth and glanced away.

 

Once again Asahi found himself following the yellow ribbons back to safety but this time he was accompanied by Hakutaku, who had agreed to help the village.  Asahi wasn’t sure what made the holy beast appear or why he had taken Asahi’s feelings into consideration but he hoped Aone would stick around long enough after the problem was solved so Asahi could figure it out.


End file.
